1. Field of the Invention
This disclosure is related to the field of automatic dishwashers, particularly for those which allow for integral storage of dishes in a separate chamber from where they are washed.
2. Description of the Related Art
There can be little doubt that the invention of the automatic dishwasher has fundamentally changed the way that both individuals, and food service establishments operate. In particular, the ability to simply gather a large number of dirty dishes together, place them in a machine, and allow the machine to wash them while an individual is engaged in another task has resulted in dramatic savings of time and money. No longer is nearly as much time spent physically washing, rinsing, sterilizing, and even drying dishes.
In addition to savings from time and labor, the automatic dishwasher has also revolutionized what can be used to clean dishes. Harsh or abrasive chemicals which previously were known for cleaning power and sterilizing effect, but which could be hazardous or unpleasant to individuals in contact with them can be used in a dishwasher. Further, the ability of dishwashers to control water pressures, temperature, time, and spray angles can produce dishes which are truly cleaner and safer than those washed by hand.
While there can be no doubt the dishwasher is a valuable labor saving device, there are still a couple of places where it creates some additional labor over hand washing. In the first instance, the dishwasher requires hand loading. Traditionally, loading of a dishwasher is accomplished through the use of one or more “racks” which are wire baskets on rollers. The front door of the dishwasher is opened, and each rack is rolled out where it can be accessed, the dishes are then stood in the racks (which often include specialized projections for supporting certain types of dishes at certain angles) and once full the racks are rolled back into the dishwasher's internal washing chamber.
In addition to hand loading, the dishwasher is also hand unloaded. Once the dishes are clean, the door is again opened, the racks are again rolled out, and the dishes are removed and placed in cabinets or in other traditional storage devices and containers. Unloading of a dishwasher is often considered a chore. In the first instance, a traditional dishwasher has to be fully unloaded before any new dirty dishes can be placed within it, otherwise the introduction of dirty dishes will serve to contaminate dishes that are already clean. Thus, the unloading process has to be entirely completed before the loading process can be reinitiated. This means that it is often necessary to store dirty dishes on a countertop or other surface while they are waiting from the dishwasher to be emptied. This is unsightly and can be unsanitary.
Because of the problems with unloading the dishwasher many users treat the dishwasher almost as a specialized “cabinet” in its own right. In effect, particularly for those that live alone, the dishwasher may simply become both the washing apparatus and the storage apparatus. If there are a sufficiently small number of dishes, a user may simply leave the clean dishes in the dishwasher and take them out to use. At the end of the day (or when they have all been used) the dirty dishes are simply returned to the dishwasher and everything is washed again. In this arrangement, there is no storage for clean dishes outside of the dishwasher, but dirty dishes are generally still stored external to the dishwasher.
In commercial settings, the concept of allowing dishes to be cleaned automatically has led to what are essentially conveyor dishwashers. One example of a conveyor dishwasher is described in United States Patent Application Publication 2008/0029131, the entire disclosure of which is herein incorporated by reference. While, these systems provide for an automated conveyance of dishes from a loading step through washing and drying in a linear fashion conveyor fashion, they do not resolve the issue of storage as the dishes. Dishes, after washing are simply deposited out of the dishwasher to await being unloaded. As conveyor dishwashers generally do not use doors, this type of arrangement is totally unsuitable for a residential application and the dishes at the end of the conveyor are not intended to be stored as they are not actually removed from the washing chamber of the dishwasher.
Instead, in a conveyor dishwasher, the dishes still have to be removed and separately stored in order to utilize the dishwasher to wash more dishes and to prevent dishes which have completed the cycle from getting wet from later wash cycles. Further, these type of conveyor systems rely on separation of a single compartment into zones as opposed to separate washing and storage chambers. This means that humidity from washing operations can get at dishes still in the machine making them unsuitable for long term storage and provides for an unsightly arrangement unsuitable for residential use.